Chapter 18

"Asami come take a look at the finished prototype," Bataar called. He had spent most of the night perfecting it so they could on production later that month. They would be used in constructing the new railway system under the city. "Let's see. Wow! It looks good, can I see you put it through the simulations?" Asami asked. With that, Bataar started picking up boulders and concrete, materials that would be used to construct the railway. Afterwards he dug a large ditch with the mecasuit. "I worked out the bugs in the system and it performed well in all the simulations. Let's run a few more for before we decide if it's ready for production." Bataar suggested. "Sounds like a plan." Asami affirmed.

They ran about a dozen more tests on the prototype. "I think it's ready. Excellent work Bataar." Asami praised. "Let's get the blueprints to production. These parts look more complicated to make than the ones for the other models, so Kuvira will have her hands full for a while. I have been watching her practice here and at the mansion, and her lava and platinum being is getting much better. I would say she is on her way to becoming a master as she picked it up so quickly." Asami praised.

"Kuvira has always been a perfectionist. Even back in Zaofu, she always put more than 100% into any task. It was what attracted me to her initially. We spent a lot of time together when we wre younger and were good friends. Even though my mother always called Kuvira her daughter, she never treated her as one and I always thought of her as a friend and never as a sister. My father always expected me to follow in his footsteps, but I never really like architecture. I always wanted to be an engineer, but I ended engineering my father's projects instead of my own, so I felt like I was drowning in his shadow. I felt suffocated and Kuvira could relate because of the way my mother treated her. We were there for each other. When we were teenagers we started to develop feelings for each other, but were too afraid to pursue them because we didn't want to complicate an already complicated family situation. After it became clear that my mother was pushing her aside and she came to me crying that she had had enough, I took her in my arms and kissed her. She was a little surprised, but we have been together ever since. My family thought that we started dating when we went to help the stabilize Ba Sing Se, but we were together a year and a half before that. We kept our relationship a secret because we knew my mother would object. She is the love of my life and I can't live without her. I can't wait to complete our sentence, so I can marry her. We've waited a long time." Bataar described getting caught up in the moment.

"What happened to Kuvira? I realized that I have only heard bits and pieces of the story." Asami asked. After getting to know Kuvira, and seeing what a compassionate person she is, she wondered what could have happened to her.

"As you know Kuvira's parents abandoned her when she was eight years old and then my mother adopted her. At first everything went great, my mother spent a lot of time with her and they grew very close. As we got older and my younger siblings were born, my mother began to ignore Kuvira. Kuvira was devastated and she started distancing herself from the family. It got to the point where she didn't even want to see my mother unless it was necessary. My mother trained Kuvira to earth bend and put all her energy into training, as it took her mind off everything that was going on. At the same time my mother put more pressure on Kuvira, I think in part because Kuvira's was an earth bending prodigy. Even though my mother trained Kuvira, her bending style is different. She was able to develop her own technique and forms. My father was also putting a lot of pressure on me to be an architect and spend more time studying. Kuvira would come and stay with me when I was studying and started reading my books. She encouraged me to pursue engineering. When my mother realized, there was nothing more she could teach Kuvira, she discontinued her bending lessons and they rarely spoke after that. Bending was a way for them to communicate and bond, and when that stopped, Kuvira became depressed. Reading and studying with me was her outlet and through it, we became closer. I realized, I had feelings for her beyond friendship and we were always very open about our feelings for each other. Even though we had feelings for each other, we didn't want to risk developing a romantic relationship that could go sour and destroy our friendship. We both relied on that emotional support and decided it wasn't worth the risk. Around that time, she came to me and told me that she wanted to get out of the house and join the academy to become a guard and I told her to go for it. She signed up without telling my mother and she had planned on leaving without saying good bye to my mother. Even though my mother never treated Kuvira as a daughter, everyone in Zaofu new her to be Suyin's adopted daughter and someone informed my mother that Kuvira signed up. I was helping Kuvira pack when my mother stormed in her bedroom without knocking and demanded to know why Kuvira would sign up for the academy without telling her and she didn't want Kuvira to go. Kuvira was devastated and she had had enough. She told my mother that if she stopped her from attending the academy, she was going to leave Zaofu. My mother asked her how she was going to support herself, and I told my mother that we had been working with a few investors design a new rail system that they planned on constructing that would connect directly to Republic City. The design was hers, I just reinforced the measurement, but everything was hers. Even though she refused, I secretly deposited most of my share of the money we got from the project into her bank account. We got a lot of money for that design. My mother was livid, I think she woke up, at least temporarily. She conceded and allowed Kuvira to attend the academy, but that she had to live at home. Kuvira told my mother that her home was in the barracks with the other soldiers and I think it was then that my mother realized that she had lost Kuvira. My mother let her leave, but she wasn't the same. My mother was depressed for a while and she tried to reconnect with Kuvira. When Kuvira graduated from the academy, she had received top honors and was given a position on the estate. She quickly proved herself to be a natural leader, and when the captain retired, he chose her as his replacement. Kuvira accepted, but she didn't realize that the captain was responsible for attending meetings and standing guard with the matriarch. Kuvira wouldn't quit, she had worked too hard. My mother tried to keep Kuvira with her at all times and tried to use that time to bond with her, but by that time it was too late. Kuvira wanted nothing to do with my mother. Kuvira and I started dating before she left the academy, but we kept our relationship a secret. When Raiko and Tenzin came to see my mother about being the interim leader of the Earth Kingdom, Kuvira spoke to her during the meeting. This was the first time she had spoken to my mother in years. She encouraged her to take the position and told her she would help her. She saw it as a way for her to reconnect with my mother. When my mother refused, that was the end of their relationship. That was when she and I began planning to go to Ba Sing Se to help stabilize the Earth Kingdom."

"Wow! That explains a lot about Kuvira's personality. She is so dedicated in anything she does and she is extremely knowledgeable in engineering. I was wondering where she learned it all. Even her bending mimics the fluid movements that waterbenders use." Asami commented.

"Kuvira read a lot about different bending styles and incorporated those movements into earth and metal bending. Dancing in my mother's dance troupe also made her more flexible and when she bends, she moves with the grace of a dancer." Bataar answered.

"I had no idea how much she suffered. No wonder Suyin affects her so much. She is lucky she has you. When did your mother find out you two were dating? Asami asked.

"My mother found out about our relationship when we became engaged. By that time she was convinced that Kuvira brainwashed me and was using me to advance her political career. It is a well-known fact that the Beifong demands respect. When I tried to tell her that we started dating when she entered the academy she refused to believe it. We have been waiting a long time to get married. All I want is to marry her and spend the rest of my life with her." Bataar confessed.

"I can't wait to see the two of you married." Asami added.